Washington -- A San Francisco gay couple facing the threat of deportation may obtain relief through a surprise decision by the Obama administration to consider same-sex marriage when deciding whom to deport.

Bradford Wells, 55, a U.S. citizen, and Anthony John Makk, 48, a citizen of Australia, have resided in the Castro district for much of their 19-year relationship. They were married in Massachusetts seven years ago, but a series of visas Makk had used to remain legally in the United States expires by Aug. 25.

The administration's new policy, announced Thursday, calls for reviewing on a case-by-case basis each of more than 300,000 pending deportations to determine which cases to pursue and which to ignore on the basis of family relationships, criminal history and other factors.

A spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security who requested that he not be identified said gay and lesbian couples are included in the definition of family.

The new policy applies far more widely than same-sex couples, encompassing thousands of children of illegal immigrants who know no other home than the United States but live here illegally. Efforts in Congress to make it easier for children of illegal immigrants to gain permanent residency under the Dream Act have failed repeatedly.

Makk's application for permanent residence and Bradford's petition to admit Makk as a spouse were denied by immigration authorities late last month. The government cited the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act, which denies all federal benefits, including immigration benefits, to same-sex couples.

The couple is appealing and asking the government to take no action, which would allow Makk to remain in the United States legally as long as the appeal is pending.

Because Makk remains in legal status until at least Aug. 25, and has not received a formal deportation order, the new administration policy does not yet apply to him; the policy applies only to people who already have been ordered to leave.

The couple is adamant that Makk should not be forced to become undocumented for the first time in order to receive relief under the new policy.

"Anthony and I have worked tirelessly for the entire length of our relationship to make sure that he has been in legal status," Wells said. "Being legal has been important to us for 19 years, and I think we should be rewarded for remaining in legal status and not be treated the same as people who have no regard for the law, because that would give people no motivation to do the right thing."

'Really big step'

Still, Wells said the new policy "is a really big step in that the government is showing compassion to gay and lesbian families."

The couple's plight, first reported in The Chronicle in June, garnered national attention. The couple had pleaded with President Obama and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano to intervene.

"There is no doubt that the press attention surrounding their story was noted by the Department of Homeland Security, and that we are on their radar today in a way we had not been before," said Steve Ralls, a spokesman for Immigration Equality, an advocacy organization working on the couple's behalf.

The new policy requires immigration enforcement officials to exercise discretion in deciding which illegal immigration cases to pursue to formal deportation. Napolitano cited the government's need to set priorities given its limited resources.

The new policy draws on a June memorandum issued by Immigration and Customs Enforcement chief John Morton that provided an extensive list of mitigating factors for immigration agents to consider. These include an immigrant's lack of criminal record, length of stay in the United States, with particular consideration for those who entered legally, family relationships and community ties, and whether the immigrant is the primary caretaker of a U.S. citizen.

Makk qualifies for leniency under several of these categories, including his marriage to Wells, his legal entry, and his role as chief caretaker for Wells, who has severe medical complications related to AIDS.

Welcome policy

The new policy was warmly embraced by Latino and gay immigration advocacy groups who have been critical of the administration's stepped-up deportations. Likewise, the new policy created an uproar among opponents of expanded immigration, who denounced it as a backdoor amnesty granted by administrative fiat.

Dan Stein, president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform, which opposes expanded immigration, said in a statement that having failed to enact immigration reform in Congress, the Obama administration "has simply decided to usurp Congress' constitutional authority and implement an amnesty program for millions of illegal aliens."

The Department of Homeland Security spokesman took issue with that characterization, noting that the new policy does not confer any new benefit to any immigrant and offers no path to citizenship or permanent residency, but only puts the cases on hold.

On Tuesday, an immigration judge closed the deportation case of Raul Sinense, a Filipino national married to a U.S. citizen, Peter Gee, in Pasadena in 2008, when California briefly allowed same-sex marriages. The couple reside in Oakland and their case is among the first in which a judge closed removal proceedings in a case involving the Defense of Marriage Act.